Plant mimics smell of ants to lure pollinating flies

Vincetoxicum nakaianum plant. PIC/BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

For the first time ever, it has been documented that a plant mimics the smell of injured ants to attract flies for pollination. This mimicry was seen in Vincetoxicum nakaianum, a newly described dogbane species native to Japan.

Researchers found that the flowers of this plant species release a scent that is almost identical to the odour of ants under attack by spiders. As the flies are drawn to the plant's scent in search of food, they inadvertently pollinate the flowers.

Chloropid flies are drawn to the scent in search of an easy meal, and in the process of moving from flower to flower, they pollinate the plants. These flies typically feed on the fluids of injured ants, a phenomenon called kleptoparasitism. Ant mimicry has been observed in many other invertebrates, but this is the first documented case of a plant using it to attract pollinators.

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